Washcloth



A. E. EVANS F eb. 23, 1954 WASHCLOTH Filed Aug. l0 1950 Patented Feb.23, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 7 WASI-ICLOTH Arthur Edward Evans,New York, N. Y.

Application August 10, 1950, Serial No. 178,629

Z Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in wash cloths and moreparticularly to improvements in Wash cloths having a built in soappocket.

Wash cloths with soap pockets so far proposed depend very largely uponthe hand of the user to retain the soap in the pocket or the pocket ismade sufficiently deep to aid in the retention of the soap. In thelatter case, the material for the wash cloth must usually be doubled.

It is an object of the instant invention to provide a wash cloth withsoap pocket especially designed to conserve time and material inproduction as compared with known similar articles.

A further object is to provide a wash cloth with soap pocket that ismore readily manipulated than similar wash cloths.

Another object is to provide a wash cloth with soap pocket in suchsimple form that the benefits thereof can be brought to a large numberat a slight cost.

Other objects of the instant invention will become apparent in thecourse of the following specification.

In the attainment of these objectives, subject wash cloth is made in twoembodiments from any suitably iiexible material having a high degree ofporosity. In both embodiments, the wash cloth is constituted of a mainbody to one face of which a soap pocket is attached at the center. Inthe first embodiment, the soap pocket is constituted of a single pieceof the same material as the main body, the single piece of materialbeing transversely slit near one end on either side of the center lineto form a flap for the pocket integral with the pocket at two points.The severed edge forming the fiap for the pocket is stitched to the mainbody of the wash cloth and the flap turned down over the severed butunstitched edge of the pocket. The opposite edge of the pocket as wellas the adjacent sides thereof and the superposed sides of the pocket andflap are then stitched to the main body. The second embodiment issimilar to the rst except that the slit is extended transversely fromone side of the pocket toward the opposite side to give one integrallyformed point of attachment of the flap to the pocket.

The invention will appear more clearly when taken in conjunction withthe accompanying y drawings showing by way of example, the preferredembodiments of the inventive concept,

In the drawings: Figures 1 through 3 show the first embodiment of theimproved wash cloth with soap pocket con- 2 structed in accordance withthe principles of this invention, and in which Figure 1 is a plan viewof the wash cloth in which the flap of the soap pocket is integrallyformed with the pocket at two points;

Figure 2 is a sectional View along 2-2 of Figure l with the bar of soapremoved; and

Figure 3 is similar to Figure 2 but with the bar of soap inserted in thepocket.

Figures 4 through 6 show the second embodiment of the improved washcloth, and in which;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary plan view of the wash cloth having the flap ofthe soap pocket integrally formed therewith at one point;

Figure 5 is a sectional view along 5-5 of Figure 4; and

Figure 6 is a sectional view along B--G of Figure 4.

Referring now in greater detai1 to the first embodiment of the improvedwash cloth shown in Figures 1 through 3 where the flap of the soappocket is integrally formed :with the pocket at two points, referencenumeral Ill indicates the main body of the wash cloth, and Il the soappocket. i n

The main body It of the wash cloth is formed from any suitably iiexibleand porous material such as terry cloth or Turkish toweling and may beof rectangular shape as illustrated although other forms could be used.

On one face of side of the main body I0 land at the center is the soappocket I I made from the same material as the main body. The soap pocketis formed from a single rectangular retaining member I2 which istransversely slit along the line I3 between the points I4 and I5 andadjacent one end to form a ilap portion IB and a pocket portion. Thepartially severed edge of the flap portion I6 is then stitched to themain body ill at the center as illustrated and turned down over thepocket portion which leaves the slitted edge I3 of the pocket betweenthe points I4 and I5 open. The opposite end of the pocket is alsostitched to the main body along the line IB, the stitching I8 beingcontinued upwardly (Fig. 1) along the lines I 9 and 20 at the sides ofthe pocket portion and further continued to fasten the sides of thesuperposed flap I6 as well as the sides of the pocket to the main bodyIU. By this construction there is actually formed two pockets an innerpocket and an outer pocket, the entrance to the outer pocket or ilapportion being along the unstitohed edge 2l thereof and the entrance tothe inner pocket along the partially severed and unstitched edge I3thereof. By

bringing the edge I3 of the inner pocket close to the stitching I'I ofthe outer pocket or flap portion, the cake of soap when inserted in theinner pocket as shown in Figure 3 is substantially prevented fromslipping out when the cloth is in use.

To prevent sagging of the pockets, the four corners thereof, 23, 24, 25,and 26, as well as the corners 21 and 28 of the end of the iiap portionare locked stitched as shown in Figure 1.

In operation:

By lifting the unstitched edge 2| of the outer pocket or flap portion I6upwardly away from the main body IIJ and pulling downwardly on theunstitched edge I3 of the inner pocket, the cake of soap 22 (Fig. 3) canbe readily inserted and will be retained in the inner pocket bythe outerpocket or flap portion under normalconditions until the soap iscompletely used. lThe soap may also be inserted in the inner pocket byturning the outer pocket or flap portion inside out which will exposethe mouth I3 of the inner pocket for the insertion of the soap. lIhen,by turning the outer pocket back to the original position, the soap willbe retained in the inner pocket. By making the soap pocket of the same`iiexible and porous material as the main body,

both sides of the wash cloth are useful and under similar conditions thesoap ladened Water will the main body of the previously described firstembodiment.

The pocket 4I is likewise similar to the pocket of the first embodimentdescribed ante except that the slit 42 made to separate the ap portion*"45 from the pocket portion 4I extends from the point 43 at one side ofthe pocket or the iiap portions to the point 44 near the opposite sidewhich gives only one integrally formed point of attachment between theflap and pocket portions as compared with the two points in the firstembodiment.

The operation with the improved wash cloth of the second embodiment issubstantially the same as that previously described under the firstembodiment.

1 The improved wash cloth could be made in three pieces as Well as twoand it will be understood that the invention is not limited to the exactdisclosure Aherein described but may lend itself to a variety ofexpressions within the scope of'the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A wash cloth, comprising a main body member of flexible and porousmaterial, a second member of flexible and porous material for one sideof said main body member, the length and width of said second memberbeing substantially less than the corresponding dimensions of said mainbody member, said second member being slit along a line a short distancefrom one of the ends thereof and parallel thereto, the slit terminatingadjacent the sides and substantially separating said second member intoa pocket portion and a flap portion, the iiap portion being turned backover the pocket portion with the sides of the two portions superposed,and means for securing the superposed sides of the two portions and theend of the pocket portion opposite the partially slit edge to said mainbody member, said means securing said slit edge of the flap portion tosaid main body member in juxtaposition with the corresponding edge ofthe pocket portion.

2. A wash cloth, comprising a rectangular main body member of flexibleand porous material, a second rectangular member of flexible and porousmaterial for one side of said main body member, the length and width ofsaid second member being substantially less than the correspondingdimensions of said main body member, said second member being slit alonga line a short distance from one of the ends thereof and parallelthereto, the slit terminating adjacent the sides and substantiallyseparating said second member into a pocket portion and a ap portion,the flap portion being turne-d back over the pocket portion with thesides of the two portions superposed, means for securing the superposedsides of the two portions and the end 0f the pocket portion opposite thepartially slit edge to said main body member, said means securing saidslit edge of the flap portion to said main body member in juxtapositionwith the corresponding edge of the pocket portion, and means forreinforcing at least one of the corners of said second member.

ARTHUR EDWARD EVANS.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS PierceMay 6, 1952

